.png)
Ben Tansey
Ben Tansey is a journalist and author. He grew up in the South Bay and is a graduate of Evergreen State College. He worked in Washington State as a reporter in a rural timber community and for many years as an editor for a Western electric energy policy publication based in Seattle.
Mission Bell Project Approved by Planning Commission | Tweaks Conditions, Authorizes Venture
One of the three largest new developments in South Pasadena over the past 20 years was approved Feb. 11 by the city’s Planning Commission, and an even larger one is due at bat shortly.
Developers...
The Stinko Staple | Slowed but Unbounded, Twohey’s Rounds Stretch Toward Reopening
It’s been two years since the unexpected announcement that Twohey’s would close its 75-year old location in Alhambra and reopen in South Pasadena at the old Carmine's in the Ace Hardware shopping center. The...
City Council Scuffle | Call for Disclosure Over Cell Tower Negotiations
When Alan Ehrlich saw the agenda for the closed session of last Wednesday’s South Pasadena City Council session, he grew concerned. There was a single item labeled “conference with real property negotiators.” It listed...
General Plan Needs Work | Local Experts Send Detailed Response to City Officials
The ever-vigilant South Pasadena Preservation Foundation has filed comments on the city’s update to its General Plan, offering both corrections and advice to broaden the comprehensiveness of the plan’s framework.
Although Wednesday, February 12, was...
Lawsuit Filed Against School District | Negligence Claimed by Family of SPHS Student Arrested...
The South Pasadena Unified School District is being sued by a family who say South Pasadena High School Assistant Principal David Speck needlessly had their son arrested in 2018 for soliciting funds from neighbors...
Arroyo Seco Trail Closure | Local Equestrians Urge City to Reopen Popular Path
Equestrians came out in force Wednesday to implore the South Pasadena City Council to reopen an equestrian trail that was mysteriously closed in early January. The closure is creating a hazardous situation for riders...
Initial Step in Infrastructure Commission Streamlining Taken | City Council Approves First Reading at...
The South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday approved the first reading of ordinances clarifying the roles of its two infrastructure commissions. The Freeway & Transportation Commission is being renamed the Mobility and Transportation Infrastructure...
CITY COUNCIL | Possible Restructuring of Transportation, Public Works Commissions on Agenda
After several years of wrangling and false starts, the South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday is set to restructure and clarify the roles of its infrastructure commissions. If approved, the Freeway & Transportation Commission...
LA Housing Crisis | Covenant Dispute in Chinatown Prompts New Legislation
The president of the Los Angeles City Council is poised to introduce new legislation addressing one of the biggest structural problems of LA’s housing crisis: the expiration of long-term covenants that guarantee affordable housing...
Pasadena Republican Club Appeals Dismissal | Push for Civil Rights Claim Against Justice Center
The Pasadena Republican Club is appealing a US District Court ruling that dismissed its civil rights claims against the City of Pasadena and the Western Justice Center, a conflict resolution education organization founded and...
Citrus Quarantine Affects South Pasadena and Surrounding Areas
South Pasadena, Pasadena, Alhambra and other San Gabriel Valley areas generally east of Figueroa St. are now within an expanded citrus quarantine zone that has been established in cooperation with federal, state and county...
Big Changes Slated for Rialto Theatre | Owner Reboots Delayed Repairs, Grants Mosaic Long-Term...
Under new arrangements worked out between the Shomof Group, owner of South Pasadena’s historic Rialto Theatre, and its current tenant, the Mosaic church group, Shomof will take charge of and shortly begin significant restoration...
‘Families on Fremont’ Speaks Out | Fatality Shines Light on Local Traffic Issues Deemed...
As they were being inundated with the plaintive pleas of citizens aggravated by the latest fatality on Fremont, the South Pasadena City Council on Wednesday committed to making safety improvements on both Fremont and...
Acres of Revitalization: The 625 Fair Oaks Property | An In-Depth Look at the...
The 2.6-acre site of a sleepy brick office building in downtown South Pasadena is slated to become the location of four new residential buildings offering an enviable array of amenities for 86 Spanish Colonial...
Advocates Push for Marquez Shooting Material | City Council Remains Silent
South Pasadena official -- the new mayor, a councilmember and the city attorney’s office -- this week all continued to refuse to comment or to take further action to review the city’s policy decision...
Defining ‘Wrongful Eviction’ Remains Vague | Tyson Family of Doctors Rescinds then Reinstates Tenant’s...
For a couple days, Christine Bullard could breathe easy.
The “no fault” 60-day eviction notice her building manager handed her Oct. 22 had turned the South Pasadenan’s life upside-down. She’d moved into a two-bedroom unit...
Future of 710 Freeway ‘Stublands’ | City of Pasadena Discusses Opportunities and Possibilities
When it comes to the future of the 710 Freeway stub in Pasadena, “nothing has been decided” according to sixth district Pasadena Councilman Steve Madison. Despite what you may have heard about the Connecting...
Evictions Rescinded | One Landlord Reacts Positively Citing Pressure from City and Tenants
“Effective immediately, any current resident who received a 60-day notice to vacate can ignore that notice.”
That was the note worried residents at the 32-unit apartment complex at 635 Prospect Ave. in South Pasadena received...
Eviction Moratorium | South Pasadena Passes Ordinance With Caveats
Saying it had only recently been made aware of a spike in “no cause” 60-day eviction notices and 30-day rent increases, the South Pasadena City Council on Nov. 6 unanimously adopted an “urgency ordinance”...
City Confuses Voters | Where to Vote at Which Poll, Where?
A city announcement about polling places in South Pasadena for the Nov. 5 election provided incomplete and imprecise information, frustrating some voters. In addition to confusion over how many polling places were available, the...
City Summons the Press | Hanscom Drive Inspection Warrant Explained
The January 11, 2018 sewage spill on Hanscom Dr. in South Pasadena was the fault of homeowner Alison Smith, city officials told reporters Friday afternoon. And while the city filed its answer and cross...
Measure C Confusion | Innocuous Ballot Measure Cause for Concern for Many
“I am voting ‘no’ on Measure C,” South Pasadena City Clerk Evelyn Zneimer said last week. Her position may not come as much of a surprise—a yes vote for Measure C on the Nov....
Resident Humiliated: Police Officers Used by City Code Enforcement in an Intimidating Show of...
Three South Pasadena police officers showed up at the home of Alison Smith Thursday morning at 1700 block of Hanscom Dr. They had a warrant authorizing them to inspect the premises for “violations of...
UPDATE: VICTORY – After Decades of Fighting: LEGISLATION IS NOW SIGNED INTO LAW THAT...
Article updated to include City of South Pasadena Mayor, Dr. Marina Khubesrian's comments on 710 Freeway Extension
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Governor signed two bills Saturday night that virtually everyone agrees will put the final stake in the...
CPA Signs Biggest Deal to Date | Doubles Renewable Capacity
The Clean Power Alliance on Oct. 3 made its single largest acquisition of clean, renewable energy by signing for the output of a large proposed Arizona wind farm. The deal will double CPA’s long-term...
Metro Projects Neglected | Watchdogs Claim Funds to Cities Shorted
South Pasadena’s transportation watchdogs say Metro shorted San Gabriel Valley cities in both the amount of money and kinds of projects the agency approved in its billion-dollar allocation of SR-710 North corridor mobility improvement...
Metro 110 Freeway Hookramp | Costs Escalate as City Receives $32 Million for Project
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LA Metro) on Sept. 26 approved $32 million for modifications to the SR-110/Fair Oaks Avenue interchange in South Pasadena. The money was part of the $512 million...
UPDATE: South Pasadena Police Confirm it has Possession of Marquez Shooting Bodycam Video
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department on Oct. 4 declined to release the South Pasadena Police Department body camera footage and other records pertaining to the Aug. 30, 2018 fatal police shooting of South...
CPA Still Violating Troublesome Rate Pledge | Temporarily Lowers Most Rates
The board of the Clean Power Alliance, the new community choice aggregator now serving about a million former Southern California Edison customers in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, on Sept. 5 approved resolutions lowering...
Mayor Loses her Cool at City Council | Heated Exchange with Citizen
In the small upstairs office where they gather around a cramped table before repairing to the first floor council chambers, citizen Madeline Di Giorgi on Wednesday offered South Pasadena city council members a vote...
